BUTLER — Despite the soggy conditions at Butler Country Club, two area girls golfers qualified for the PIAA Individual Championships on Monday after posting top scores in the WPIAL tournament.
Quaker Valley junior Makenna Kamnikar and Moon Area sophomore Liv DeGori advanced in Class 2A and 3A, respectively.
In last week’s qualifier at Willowbrook Country Club, Kamnikar shot a 92 and came into Monday’s round in sixth place out of 17 players in the 2A field.
The junior’s championship round did not start well, with a quadruple bogey and triple bogey on the front nine, but she locked in on the back nine to shoot 54-45–99.
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Kamnikar’s mindset throughout the round was one of the reasons why she found the success she did throughout the round, especially on the back nine.
“For most of the holes today I was looking to get a good drive out and then just work on my approach shots to hit as many greens as possible. I think looking to do that helped me push and get through the round.”
DeGori was eager to have the chance to punch her ticket Monday after shooting a 103 in last year’s championship round marking an end to her stellar freshman year in 2023.
“I really wanted to go to states this season. Throughout the round today I just tried my best under these conditions and just hoped everything that I did was enough to get me there and it was.”
Last week, the Moon Area sophomore carded an 84 in the qualifier. On Monday, she carded an identical score, even with the poor course conditions, shooting a 42 on both the front and back nine.
DeGori’s day did not start the greatest as she double-bogeyed her first two holes. But after settling in, she shot even par on the rest of the front nine except for a bogey on No. 6.
“My full swing today was a lot better than it was before,” DeGori said. “I chose to only hit my woods today instead of my driver, which helped keep my ball straight. My second shots were also good. The short game for me was rough so if that was better it could have been a much better day.”
Four other golfers competed in the championship round.
In Class 2A, Central Valley junior Emma Mrkonja placed 11th as she carded a 103 on Monday. Beaver Area’s Jillian Dinsmore recorded a 105 to tie for 15th place.
In Class 3A, Moon Area’s Angelina Schild missed out on her second consecutive trip to the state finals, finishing in 10th place after carding an 85. Savanna Stile also missed out on a return trip to the state finals as the Blackhawk junior finished in 17th place with a 91.
Both Kamnikar and DeGori will play in the PIAA state championship, which will tee off at Penn State Golf Course on Monday, Oct. 21.
This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Two Beaver Valley golfers qualify for PIAA individual championships
